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he never chose the hot hide!

P

palmiro

New member
i've observed this behaviour from months now.. my corn never rests in the hot hide. the temperature is correct, it's around 30°, and even if i get it lower, he would still prefer the cold hide. i'm a bit worried because now the temperature in my house is quite low.. it's around 20° and i know that's too cold for a cornsnake..

he never got ill and never regurged, but usually during winter the house is heated and never goes below 23°.. now during autumn it's not, and that's the first autumn with my corn..

i guess it's a temperature problem right?
 
Do you measure the temp with a probe directly on the heating mat?
If no: You really should do that, analog thermometers are inaccurate and measure the air temperature. If the probe is not directly on the UTH, it will obviously be much higher than 30°
If yes: try to lower it to 28.5°. That's what i keep mine on and it seems the perfect balance for my snake.
 
i'll try to lower that.. at the moment he's resting on the hot hide.. but that's totally random.. my question really is: is a cornsnake spending most of his time under the uth? or just parts of the day?

it's almost a year i have mine and he usually is on the cold side.
 
palmiro said:
i'll try to lower that.. at the moment he's resting on the hot hide.. but that's totally random.. my question really is: is a cornsnake spending most of his time under the uth? or just parts of the day?

it's almost a year i have mine and he usually is on the cold side.
Click to expand...

Depends from snake to snake really.
I try to "listen" to my snake. When is see him spending multiple days on the hot side (not when he's digesting) i raise the temp a bit. When i see him spending all the time on the cold side i lower the temp a bit.

The cold side changes with the room temperature so i see him more on the hot side so i raise the temp. So cold room = higher temp, which is pretty logical if you think of it. But i must say i never go under 28° or over 30.5° and when i change the temp i monitor his behavior (and the temperature) even more than usual.
 
Just thought of this.
Do you use 2 identical hides? If not it could be he just feels more secure in the cold side hide. You could switch them to see if it changes his behavior.
I also like to give him more substrate in the hides so he can burrow inside the hide. And on the warm side hide i make a bowl out of substrate so he's closer to the heat mat and he can pile up some substrate against the entrance of the hide.
Make it cozy. Because what we feel like cozy, they will feel more secure in. Think of the substrate as pillows and sheets and the UTH as a warm water sack or an electric blanket. So you want sheets and pillows all around you but want to be so close to the warmth as possible but still have some cushioning.
 
Most of mine spend the majority of their time on the cold side. That isn't unusual.

I'd try swapping the cool and warm side hides as well. If he prefers one particular type, then just use one of those on both sides of the floor.

Other than that, I wouldn't worry. If he has the correct temperature range on the floor, then he'll choose the right one for him. 30C (86F) on the floor surface is fine for the warm side.
 
bitsy said:
Most of mine spend the majority of their time on the cold side. That isn't unusual.

I'd try swapping the cool and warm side hides as well. If he prefers one particular type, then just use one of those on both sides of the floor.

Other than that, I wouldn't worry. If he has the correct temperature range on the floor, then he'll choose the right one for him. 30C (86F) on the floor surface is fine for the warm side.
Click to expand...

I'm getting good at this xD

O.T.: I just wanted to add that i maybe care too much for my snake because i just have on (at the moment :laugh:) As long as you keep the temp at 30° and give him the opportunity of a warm side hide he will do just fine. Big breeders with rack systems can't check on each individual snake what they like and all those snakes do just fine, and their offspring is the proof of that.
 
My snow corn moves his hide where he wants it. I was cleaning his wooden hide when I caught him. He only has one real hide and newspaper now and seems happy enough. My anery drags something under the top layer and makes a paper tent. She's so funny.

The anery likes to be cooler, but she poops on the warm side so I know she's regulating when I'm not around. Corns do live in temperate zones where it gets pretty cold at night and during the winter. They are a hardy snake.
 
My snow is constantly climbing and resting on the lip of his enclosure. I'll pick him up and he'll be ice cold... Should I be worried? I mean... He is the one doing is, all the temps are correct and he has hides available on both sides.
 
he's spending his time on the hot side still! and i'm glad cause this morning my room's temp was 19°! i'm really looking forward to winter, when the heaters will be on!
 
I'll pick him up and he'll be ice cold... Should I be worried?
Click to expand...
Nope.

Correct temps on the floor, suitable hides on warm and cool sides, no regurges - all equals a happy Corn. He's just doing his thing.
 
I figured as much. He sheds fine, stays on the warm side after eating double pinkies, deficates fine, never in a sour mood. Just worries me. I'm not used to snakes being so cold. Thanks for the re-assurance.
 
A Corn's ideal maximum is several degrees below human core body temp. They should always feel cool - or lukewarm at most - when you touch them.
 
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